Strong women are deserving of big love. Of the kind of love that doesn’t seem realistic. Of the type of love that is real. And of the type of love that changes you.

Strong women don’t need the poems, or the shiny sparkly engagement rings. They don’t need the red roses to feel wanted or needed. And they don’t need the material objects that are fawned over by so many.

Strong women need the actions, not the words. They need to see the work that you put into the relationship, not what you say about it. Strong women need to see it before their eyes, that you want this. That you want her, and that you love her.

No matter how many times you say it, she will only believe it if you show it.

She doesn’t care about the texting. About how many times you tag her on Instagram, or about how much money you spend on her for dinner dates. She doesn’t care about the superficial crap our society has shoved down our throats.

Strong women don’t need to be validated by things that can be thrown away and forgotten. They don’t need to be showered in rose petals and candles. They don’t need the ‘stuff’.

They just need to be validated by how you treat them. By how you care for them. And by how you listen to them.

Strong women need your support whether or not they show it. They need your listening ear, whether or not they ask for it. Strong women need to be cared for, no matter if they are sick or not. They need you. They need you to be there for them through all the good times and through all the hard times.

Please, wait for the kind of person who showers you in kisses instead of with gifts. Wait for the kind of person who doesn’t just write ‘I love you’ to you in a card, wait for the person who actually says it aloud. Wait for the kind of person who cherishes you madly. Wait for the type of love that is soft and beautiful. Wait for the type of person who waited years to meet a woman like you, and who knows that you were worth the wait.

Strong women need the kind of love that they can count on. They need the kind of love that lifts them up when they can’t lift themselves up. And they need the kind of love that doesn’t whisper ‘forever’, no, they need the kind of love that is forever.